The University of Colorado's Boulder campus, long accused of being a bastion of liberal thought, will receive an injection of conservatism over the next three years thanks to $1 million in donations that will fund a series of right-leaning guest scholars.

CU's inaugural conservative scholar likely will begin teaching on campus in spring 2013 under a program that has struggled to gain momentum amid the recession.

University officials first unveiled plans in 2007 to establish a "Visiting Chair in Conservative Thought and Policy," an endowment that would require $7 million to $9 million to establish. Given the economic downturn, the university scaled back those plans and will instead run a pilot program to bring visiting scholars to the Boulder campus for at least three years. A more permanent endowed chair could still be established in the future.

"We embarked on this, and, at the same time, the economy went south," said Todd Gleeson, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. "In the short-term we decided to set ourselves a fundraising goal of $1 million to essentially run a pilot for three years."

More than 20 donors have pledged their support, with commitments ranging from $1,000 to $250,000, according to CU President Bruce Benson.

"I am very pleased with the significant progress that has been made this past year, after having this initiative languish for several years," Benson, a Republican himself, wrote in an e-mail to the Board of Regents in late January. The e-mail was obtained by the Camera through an open-records request.

'Token right-winger'

In a move that sparked controversy at the time, former Chancellor Bud Peterson, a registered Republican, unveiled plans to establish the chair five years ago. The announcement came on the heels of complaints from conservative students that there was a liberal bias in their classrooms. At the time, the Wall Street Journal quoted conservative David Horowitz saying he opposed the idea because it would amount to CU appointing a "token right-winger" who would resemble "an animal at the zoo."

Gleeson said the guest scholar will teach on subjects such as the Federalist papers and theories of small government, while exploring the historical political thoughts of figures such as James Madison, John Locke and Thomas Hobbes while also examining conservative approaches to economic theories.

While these are topics that long have been taught at CU through American history, political science and economics courses, the visiting scholar will allow for a more interdisciplinary approach, Gleeson said.

"'Conservative' has one context in political arena, but it has a slightly different meaning in the academic, intellectual context," Gleeson said.

The scholars will rotate on an annual basis and, Gleeson said, perhaps they could include a journalist, economist from the Federal Reserve or a military figure.

In addition to teaching, the visiting scholar will mentor students and participate in public speaking events.

A 10-person search committee, made up of five faculty members plus donors and community members, will be tasked with finding candidates for the job. Ultimately, appointments will need to be approved by the dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and Chancellor Phil DiStefano.

CU Professor and Associate Dean Keith Maskus will lead the committee.

"We are looking for someone of prominence -- a scholar focused on the principals of conservative thought," Maskus said. "It could certainly be somebody from an academic institution or think tank or a prominent person from the media."

'Step in the right direction'

McKayne Boedeker, who is on the executive committee of the Boulder County Republicans, said he'll be interested in taking a course from the visiting professor.

"In general, most of the political science faculty have a liberal, progressive bias -- maybe not as strong as it used to be," he said. "But I think it will be good to bring more of a balance to the classrooms so that students can be exposed to both sides of the debate."

CU senior Corey Wiggins, a registered Democrat who is majoring in political science and education, said the university's curriculum already encompasses civics and core conservative beliefs.

"They don't need to spend a crazy amount of money teaching us what is already available," he said.

But freshman Courtney Hughes, a Democrat helping organize a campus campaign event for President Barack Obama on Wednesday, said she thinks bringing a conservative guest scholar is fair.

"This campus is known for being a super-liberal campus -- and that's why some people come here," she said. "But I think it's good to have two sides presented. Even though I'm a Democrat, I think this is a step in the right direction."

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